Ostia
Ostia is the capital of the Confederation of the New Free Planets Alliance and the most populous city on the planet Arzor. Due to its population, strategic location, and political importance, it maintains a large degree of influence on Arzor and in the larger Confederation. The city itself is composed of three general areas, the Ancient City, Old Ostia, and New Ostia, each founded and created by a different political power on the same site and governed mostly as a single entity. It is an ethnically and culturally diverse city, hosting a large population of immigrants and non-native ethnic groups. With a population of more than 40 million in the city proper, and 82 million in the metropolitan area, it is the most populous settlement in the Confederation and part of a larger urban agglomeration that covers much of southern Mazria. The site was first settled in 225 B.C.E. by a group of merchants to protect the Piraeus Narrows from marauders and serve as a waypoint for merchant convoys headed east. It served in this capacity until the Tyranny of the Ten Thousand, when it became the capital of the regime in 310 C.E. 22 years later, when the Tyranny was overthrown by the warrior-queen Almalexia Altaria Ran Yuko, it became the capital of the Kingdom of Hedras. In 332 C.E., the Kingdom was attacked and defeated by the expanding Empire of Hellas, which later established a city of its own on the site, an area now known as Old Ostia. In 1924 C.E., the Great Rebellion forced the Hellas from the city and it was later declared the capital of the new United Mazrian States, leading to the founding of New Ostia. Ostia is famous for the floating islands that make up Old Ostia, originally held aloft by magical energy and now supplemented by repulsors for safety purposes. The cities of Ancient Ostia and New Ostia lie below on the surface, Ancient Ostia being located on a nearby hill for defensive purposes in its time and New Ostia being built along the bay. Because of its unique layout, cultural and historical importance, and role as a major transit hub, the city attracts tens of millions of visitors and hosts a number of other important landmarks. It is also an important economic center and education center, although the trade of physical goods through the city's port has declined in favor of less crowded venues. History Ostia is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in the United Mazrian States, having been a prominent contributor to the area's culture, politics, and economy. Early History Ostia was founded as a way station and redoubt along the lucrative trade rounds in lower Mazria in 225 B.C.E., commanding the Piraeus Narrows. The Narrows at the time served as an important junction between east and west, open to shipping in the Thessalian Sea to the north, to the Ceres Sea to the south, and home to the trade by land between the rich silver and copper mines of the Hedras Peninsula. During this period, the area was divided into a number of independent city-states and tribal confederations, and the Tylian merchants that founded the city were able to purchase their political freedom from the neighboring fiefdoms as well as finance a strong army to protect the city. Ostia was ruled by a collection of noble trading families, as part of a council, with an elected monarch who served for life and presided over the council. The city expanded rapidly owing to its mild climate and vast economic importance. The Ostian navy became a powerful force in the Thessalian Sea, and the city itself came to rule over a loose collection of vassals. By 104 B.C.E., the city came into conflict with its neighbors, primarily the city-state of Theria. Theria controlled much of the eastern lands, and had amassed its wealth from the rich silver mines, whereas Ostia had financed itself via trade. Taxes placed on trade through the Narrows and the western Thessalian Sea had been a source of constant political friction, which eventually boiled over into full conflict The Piraean War that lasted fifteen years between the coalitions of Ostia and Theria exhausted both powers, and ended inconclusively in 89 B.C.E. when both powers agreed to respect the other's sphere of influence. In 55 B.C.E., a great plague swept through the region, and Ostia with its large population was particularly hard-hit. From a pre-plague population of some 483,000, one of the largest in antiquity at the time, the city shrank to some 223,000 by 43 B.C.E., when the plague is generally considered to have ended. Fear of the plague had halted much of the trade Ostia relied upon for its income, and the city entered a period of stagnation, during which time its perennial rival Theria conquered it in 33 B.C.E., making it a vassal and stripping the merchant council of power. In 2 C.E., the city's fortunes began to reverse. Trade in the Thessalia Sea had resumed, and a year before, a large storm had wrecked the port of Phaleron, which Theria depended upon for its sea trade and which had also supplanted Ostia as the primary port in the central Thessalian Sea. Trade once more flowed into the city, and in 6 C.E., a major rebellion forced the Therians from the city, reestabishing Ostia as an independent city-state. Its population once again expanded, reaching 374,000 in 32 C.E., although still short of the 483,000 it had achieved decades ago. Following the rebellion, the city briefly became a direct democracy before adopting a republican system due to the logistical issues of administrating such a large population direcly. The development of the thaumaturgical arts, primarily from the northern reaches of the Mazrian continent, began trickling into the region by 40 C.E., mostly in the form of wandering practitioners, often in exile, and a limited quantity of printed material and artifacts. It was taken up by many to varying degrees, although most were capable only of the most basic uses. In 58 C.E., the first corps of battle mages was formed, as a special unit within the Ostian army. Heroic Age Ostia entered the Heroic Age of Arzoran history as one of the leading cities of the world, in terms of cultural, political, and economic influence. It had reached a population of 462,000, and was governed by the enlightened Quaestor Maneen Qarhesh, whose reform of the city's civil code is the basis of many of the planet's present legal systems. Despite this, the city refrained from conquests during the period, leveraging its economic influence to exercise power, but not taking to the field during the golden age of ancient combat except in its own defense. In 106 C.E., a large fire struck the city, destroying a quarter of the inhabited area and causing the deaths of some 12,000 people. Reconstruction efforts continued over the next few decades, but eventually in 125 C.E., the outbreak of war with the city-state of Markech disturbed the recovery efforts. While Ostia had maintained a large and well-trained army, the great general Yulides of Markech succeeded in defeating the Ostians at the Third Battle of the Piraeus Narrows in a double-envelopment, and sacked the city two months after. Ostia would have been subsumed into Yulides' domains had it not been for the general's untimely death in the Battle of the High Pass six months later, at which time his kingdom collapsed to infighting and Ostia retained its independence. The rest of the Heroic Age was quiet for Ostia, which profited from wartime trade while being too large for most belligerent powers to consider an easy prospect. However, in 302 C.E., the city-state of Quara declared war on Ostia, on the grounds of its trade with its perennial enemy, Markech. Quara had benefited from the rich silver mines inherited from the now-abandoned city of Theria, and had hired large numbers of mercenaries to reinforce its army. The Quaran and Ostian armies met on the Plains of Khare, and at the Battle of Khare, the Ostian army emerged victorious by a slim margin under the leadership of Ushir Piraeus Ran-Yuko. Urtandus' War Following the battle, the mercenary bands hired by the Quarans revolted, demanding immediate compensation for their services. Quara had privately counted on acquiring much of the payment from the sack of Ostia, which was now no longer an option, and with the Quaran army now in shambles, the mercenary bands struck and sacked Quara instead. While most of the mercenary groups departed or disbanded after acquiring their payment, one group remained intact, referred to as the Band of Ten Thousand, under the leadership of Urtandus. Comprised entirely of veteran soldiers, Urtandus had decided to lead his men to establish his own kingdom, and the army marched toward Ostia. Following the Battle of Khare, the Ostian army had been severely depleted by casualties and a reduction in size ordered by the ruling council, despite General Ran-Yuko's advice. The costly battle had reduced the number of healthy men available for work in the shipping and trade industry, and the council was eager to avoid losing any share of its trade to rivals along the northern shore of the Thessalian Sea. When Urtandus began marching toward Ostia, the council was slow to act, assuming that the small force could be defeated, or that even if it were not, the mercenaries could be placated with tribute. This illusion was shattered at the Fourth Battle of the Piraeus Narrows, in which the Ostian army of 14,000 under Ushir Piraeus Ran-Yuko was defeated by Urtandus and his 10,000 men. Despite a well-fought battle on Ran-Yuko's part, the skill of Urtandus' mercenaries proved decisive, and they were able to fight off a flanking attack that would have tipped the scales in favor of the Ostians. Ran-Yuko himself was killed covering his army's escape, leaving behind his family in the outlying town of Senir. Category:New Free Planets Alliance Category:Cities of the New Free Planets Alliance Category:Cities